Everything Nac

Some say the best way to learn is by doing, and Stephen F. Austin State University students enrolled in the James I. Perkins College of Education are putting this adage to the test with a service-learning project.

As part of their curriculum, SFA elementary education students are learning the best way to teach social studies to elementary students, and Dr. Vicki Thomas, SFA elementary education assistant professor, said service and experiential learning are some of the best teaching methods.

Thomas and students in two of her courses have partnered with H2O for Life to complete a WASH project, which includes raising money for four double-pit latrines and four hand-washing facilities for their partner school in Malawi, Africa.

According to the H2O for Life website, the organization provides service-learning opportunities to schools and organizations to “raise awareness about the water crisis while taking action to provide funds for water, sanitation and hygiene education for a partner school in a developing country.”

SFA’s partner school is Chokolo Primary School in Africa, which does not have a clean drinking water source, lacks appropriate hand-washing areas and has poor sanitary facilities, according to the project website.

“As future teachers and current students, we are learning how to effectively teach social studies to young children. We have learned the importance of engaging students in meaningful lessons, rather than simply reading information from a textbook and answering questions,” said SFA student Katelyn Ford, who serves as the publicity spokesperson for the project. “By becoming involved with H2O for Life, we will know how to connect with schools around the world in the future, allowing our students to make meaningful connections to curricular goals.”

Students will be launching their fundraising efforts with an event from 12:30 to 3:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 5, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Plaza. There will be simulations for attendees to experience what it’s like to carry various gallons of water across varied distances, as well as see comparisons between clean and dirty water.

“The idea is to have students on campus understand the hardships people face in Third World countries who do not have easy access to clean water,” Ford said. “We will speak with students, share information provided from H2O for Life, sell items and accept donations.”

The project also includes hygiene training for students and teachers at Chokolo Primary School, as well as planting trees in the area. Students and their families also will receive P&G’s PUR packs, a water purification technology that transforms dirty water to drinkable water.

Ford said their goal is to raise $1,000 and awareness of global water shortages, encourage water conservation and inspire students to help make a difference.

“Through this project, we have become personally involved in service learning, which has allowed us to truly understand the importance of this learning style,” Ford said. “As participants, we have learned about the water crisis and ways to help. As future teachers doing this project, we have been able to truly see how service learning can make an impact on a student and can allow a person to grow into a global citizen.”

Thomas hopes her SFA elementary education students will implement what they have learned through this project into their future classrooms.

“It’s amazing how our students can touch so many lives with one project,” Thomas said. “I hope when they graduate, the students will carry out a service-learning project close to their hearts in the communities and schools they serve.”

To donate, visit http://www.h2oforlifeschools.org/index.php/get-involved/search/item/1004-stephen-f-austin-state-university.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s Braille and Cane Club within the Department of Human Services has been recognized with the Natalie Barraga Award from the Texas Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired.

In conjunction with the award, the City of Nacogdoches is proclaiming April 7 Braille and Cane Club Day. The first formal reading of the proclamation and display of the Barraga award will be at 3:15 p.m. Thursday, April 7, in the Human Services Building, Room 314, on the SFA campus.

The Barraga award acknowledges excellence in public school programs for students with visual impairments, and it is given in honor of Dr. Natalie Barraga for her long and distinguished career in the education of students with visual impairments and in university personnel preparation.

“This is a tremendous honor, and we are so proud of the club’s initiative and achievement in the field,” said Michael Munro, SFA visual impairment and orientation and mobility program director. “I am very proud that our Braille and Cane Club has become such an incredible resource for students and families in and around the SFA community.”

The SFA Braille and Cane Club is a student-governed organization that strives to raise awareness about visual impairments. Shannon Dwyer serves as the club’s president and is an SFA senior majoring in rehabilitation. She attributes the club’s success to its members and past officers, such as Laura Poyner and Ashlynn Peterson, who have worked to elevate the club’s standing within the community.

“Receiving this award not only means we are getting our name out into the community, but also that we are getting closer to achieving our mission statement,” Dwyer said. “It truly is an honor to be recognized and to receive the award.”

The club was established in 1999 and promotes advocacy, encourages empowerment and provides education to the surrounding community. Club-sponsored events, such as the annual Christmas and Easter celebrations, White Cane Day awareness, Dining in the Dark, Disability Pride Parade and more, have become important resources for the community and families of individuals with visual impairments. The club has approximately 40 current members.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s School of Human Sciences honor society, Phi Upsilon Omicron, is dedicating its service projects to cancer prevention and to helping those battling cancer in honor of former Phi U officer and SFA interior design major Chelsie Watts, who died of cancer Jan. 30, 2015.

Jessalyn Welch, Phi U president, also has been affected by cancer and helped put these projects in perspective. Welch said her aunt is a breast cancer survivor, and a close family friend died from the disease when Welch was in high school.

“I have been personally affected by cancer,” Welch said. “I feel like I can relate to Chelsie’s family and those who knew her because I also have lost loved ones to cancer. I believe these projects can help make others more aware of the ongoing battle against cancer.”

This past October, Phi U members organized a Pink Out Day to raise money for breast cancer awareness and prevention. The group decorated the Human Sciences North Building Lobby on the SFA campus with pink balloons and paper chains and set up a booth to collect donations. Phi U raised more than $160 and presented the proceeds to Robin Johnson, a representative for the American Cancer Society, on March 8.

“Every little bit helps,” Johnson said. “You may think the money you raise doesn’t help, but even $25 can help a cancer patient get to treatment in Houston.”

Phi U members also are helping with Relay for Life and decorated luminaries for a special Relay for Life ceremony. Johnson said the luminaries represent people who have died from or are battling cancer.

“The ceremony is a time to remember,” Johnson said. “Relay for Life is a big pep rally to fight cancer and an opportunity to rally around the survivors we have in our lives.”

Phi U members also assembled care packages, which included prayer and puzzle books, tissues, mouthwash, lotion, crackers and more to donate to people receiving cancer treatment at Nacogdoches Medical Center.

“Helping locally is important because when you think about the fight against cancer you think of something that is very big and not personal,” Welch said. “By donating to Medical Center, we are making an impact at the local level, and we can see firsthand how these donations and kind gestures help.”

The group also participated in the American Cancer Society’s Coaches vs. Cancer event, a basketball game held for attendees to help raise money for the fight against cancer. During the event, Lumberjack basketball fans were encouraged to pledge either a one-time $10 donation or an amount for each 3-point shot the Lumberjacks made during the game against Lamar University in January.

Each Phi U chapter around the nation participates in a service project. Phi U exists to recognize and promote academic excellence, develop opportunities for leadership through service, and encourage lifelong learning and commitment to advance family and consumer sciences and related areas. SFA’s chapter has approximately 45 members.

Stephen F. Austin State University students in SFA Mass Communication Lecturer Greg Patterson’s Graphic Design for Media class visit Tuesday with Robin Land, right, publisher of The Daily Sentinel.

The MCM 403 students toured the Sentinel office, speaking with Land and other staff members on the fluid nature and future of news as well as how reporters and designers manage time, among other topics.

“Visiting media professionals helps students experience and understand the role of media in society, which is one of our program learning objectives,” Patterson said. “The visit helped to emphasize the importance of organization and time management, which is essential for journalists working with tight deadlines. Another course goal is the ability to understand and explain the role of graphics typography, design and layout in print and digital communications.”

The trip enabled students to connect classroom lessons with real-world examples.

“I think the most interesting thing for me during the trip was learning that reporters write 40 to 60 different stories a month. I know for myself that it is sometimes difficult to complete one story a week in my classes, so this was good preparation for me,” said Emily Brown, a MCM 403 student. “Trips that specifically put students into their field are important. It is good knowledge for me to have of how a real newspaper works, and I was able to see more of the things my professors talk about.”

Nearly three years after discussions began, the first physical off-site branch of Stephen F. Austin State University has opened at Lone Star College’s University Center at Montgomery and, pending approval, will begin offering courses this fall.

Hosted through SFA’s College of Liberal and Applied Arts, two bachelor’s and one master’s degree will be offered through the partnership to individuals seeking to build on associates degrees, vocational or technical training programs, military training, and occupational licensure or certification, or to advance in any social work industry.

Located in The Woodlands, SFA’s University Center office will draw students predominantly from the north Houston area.

“This partnership creates a pathway for people to move from a vocational/technical field into a bachelor’s and graduate program,” said Dr. Stephen Cooper, associate dean of SFA’s College of Liberal and Applied Arts and director of the Division of Multidisciplinary Programs. “It provides them an opportunity to advance their career or change career paths without losing all the work they’ve already done.”

Degree programs available through the partnership include a Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences, Bachelor of Social Work, and Master of Social Work. The B.A.A.S. option gives students holding an Associate in Applied Sciences or certificate program completers an opportunity to apply workforce education credit toward a bachelor’s degree.

The B.A.A.S. with a professional development area in public administration also offers an opportunity for students to segue into a Master of Public Administration or Master of Social Work. Both are ideal for students in the Applied Arts and Sciences program in allied health occupations, public safety, behavioral health or human services.

“The SFA College of Liberal and Applied Arts is excited about launching our new relationship with Lone Star College,” said Dr. Brian Murphy, dean of the college. “The students and the community will benefit as a result of this cooperation.”

Many courses will be offered online and through Web and video conferencing, allowing students to pursue these options without leaving the Houston area.

“I’m excited that attending SFA will now be an option for more non-traditional students,” said Kimberly Morris, SFA assistant director of admissions at the LSC-Montgomery’s University Center. “I’m available to discuss all aspects of the application and enrollment process for individuals who intend on pursuing a degree at the main campus or through the University Center at Lone Star. I’m especially interested in assisting community college students with taking classes that will seamlessly transfer into SFA for their intended major.”

Many courses will be offered online or at night to increase flexibility and cater to the partnership’s main demographic — working professionals and other vocational/technical students.

“The reason why social work was such a good fit is because there are no similar degree plans offered on the north side of Houston,” Cooper said. “There also are only two M.S.W. programs in the Houston area, and admission is very competitive, so the market demand for an M.S.W. in the area has not been met by far. A lot of SFA students come from Houston as well, so they now have the opportunity to come to SFA for their B.S.W., return home and also get their M.S.W. from us.”

Deliberations with LSC began in the fall of 2013 when SFA officials became interested in open space within the organization’s University Center. SFA began working with LSC to articulate, or match, dozens of courses offered by the college to equivalent or applicable SFA classes.

“This partnership creates a pathway for students and working professionals to go directly from a variety of areas to a four-year degree program without having to find some place that will do a course-by-course articulation,” Cooper said. “A lot of the students in vocational, technical or other fields need a four-year degree to advance in administration and forward. This provides a pathway not only to do that but, for some of them, it could provide a pathway to springboard into a graduate program.”

Enrollment for the fall opens in April.

For information or to apply, email SFA.TheWoodlands@sfasu.edu.

Those interested in the B.A.A.S. degree may call (936) 468-6066 or email scooper@sfasu.edu for more information; or for the B.S.W. or M.S.W., call (936) 468-5105, or email swk@sfasu.edu.

Successful in its first year, the second Lumberjack Psychology Conference will be held Monday, April 4, aimed at showcasing undergraduate and graduate research and preparing students for the upcoming Southwestern Psychology Association conference.

Three SFA students received awards from the Psi Chi National Honor Society following last year’s SWPA conference in Kansas.

“The purpose of the Lumberjack Psychology Conference is two-fold,” said Dr. Lauren Brewer, SFA assistant professor of psychology. “First, we want to share the impressive student and faculty research we’ve been doing with the SFA campus and community here in Nacogdoches. Second, this conference will help prepare our students to present at the SWPA in Dallas April 8 through 10.”

Monday’s conference will begin at 4 p.m. on the second floor of the McKibben Education Building with opening remarks from Dr. Kyle Conlon, assistant professor of psychology. A poster session will begin at 4:15 p.m. with talk/paper sessions beginning at 5:15 p.m. in Rooms 269 and 263.

The conference is open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.

“The Lumberjack Psychology Conference gives students an opportunity to hone their research presentation skills at SFA before presenting their research at this prestigious professional conference,” Brewer said.

Fifty-six individual students and faculty members have had their research accepted for presentation at this year’s SWPA conference. Those chosen from SFA will present 33 posters and seven talks/papers at the event.